Former California Supreme Court Justice David Terry had a temper—as he showed in the 1859 killing of U.S. Senator David Broderick in a duel just...
David Terry Tests the Wrong Man
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Articles
The Scandalous Saddle
As absurd as this may sound, the sidesaddle took hold in the 14th century to protect the virginity of a teenaged princess traveling across Europe to...
Juan Cortina
Juan Cortina was a rancher and politician in the Lower Rio Grande in 1859. He was displeased as Anglos took over land next to his. And he became...
Bass Reeves: U.S. Marshall
When those old gunfighters are sittin’ around Valhalla discussin’,”Who was the greatest of em all,” the name Bass Reeves is sure to be mentioned....
Was Bill Tilghman Honest?
Was Bill Tilghman honest? Terrel Shields — Siloam Springs, Arkansas. Bill Tilghman was, at best, a flawed character. Zoe Tilghman’s biography of her...
Vaqueros, Buckaroos & Cowboys
Blame it on Joseph McCoy. The entrepreneur turned Abilene, Kansas, into a cowtown, which made the Chisholm Trail synonymous with cowboys and the...
Lady Desperados
Stagecoach robber Pearl Hart is the most famous of the twenty-nine women who spent time at the Yuma Territorial Prison during the years, 1876-1909,...
Did “Buffalo Bill” Cody Ever Ride for the Pony Express?
For more than 30 years, our historical consultant, Paul Andrew Hutton, has been arguing with historians over whether or not “Buffalo Bill” Cody rode...
What History Has Taught Me: Ron Lesser
The poster I love the most, out of the more than 100 movie and television show posters I have created, is the one for 1973’s High Plains Drifter,...
A Deadly Feud Between Two Jims
Jim Harkey and Jim Barbey were both riders at the Cottonwood Mott Line Camp in west Texas in 1880. Nobody knew of any trouble between the two...
Poker Alice
The "Queen of the Western Gamblers" was Alice Ivers. She was both gambler and madam. She also had a religious side, closing her brothel on Sundays...
What Pistol did “Wild Bill” Hickok use to Kill Davis Tutt in 1865?
What pistol did “Wild Bill” Hickok use to kill Davis Tutt in 1865? Ron Bolza — Slatington, Pennsylvania. The Hickok-Tutt affair has been described...